IEP
Gonçalo Saraiva Matias
The amendment provides that managers will only be held responsible in cases where intent to harm the State or gross negligence is proven.
The Government is preparing to approve a in-depth review of the Court of Auditors Organization and Process Law (LOPTC) which brings major changes to the responsibility regime of public managers. The proposal should be discussed and approved by the Council of Ministers this Thursday.
According to the , the main change provides that public managers will only be held financially responsible in cases of gross negligence or willful misconduct, that is, when there is evidence of intent to harm the State. In practice, the Executive intends to eliminate error-based liability or decisions made in good faith, even if they caused harm.
This change is part of a broader reform that aims to reduce the weight of prior inspection by the Court of Auditors. Currently mandatory for public contracts above certain values, this inspection will become exceptional. The Government wants to reverse the current model, favoring the subsequent control of administrative acts, to the detriment of verification before their execution.
The Minister of State Reform, Gonçalo Matias, has argued that the current system contributes to delays in public decision-making, particularly in the contracting and execution of investments. According to the governor, there is a “excessive concentration” in the prior visa, which conditions administrative action.
The reform is being criticized by the president of the Court of Auditors, Filipa Urbano Calvão, who argues precisely the opposite than the Government proposes. “These processes of eliminating prior controls must be accompanied by a reinforcement of the responsibility regime for public managers”, he states.
The Government maintains, on the other hand, that the current model is based on a logic of “distrust” which harms the efficiency of the State and makes it difficult to attract qualified staff for public functions.
Therefore, managers must be evaluated according to the principle of sound and prudent management, and only in cases of intentional or seriously negligent action will there be financial liability.
